Obama Can't Save Democrats

But Republican backers are more likely to vote

(NEWSER) - It's good news/bad news time, Democrats. Bad news: The public doesn’t much like you. In fact, a whopping 60% disapprove of the job you’re doing in the latest AP poll. Good news: They dislike Republicans even more; 68% disapprove of them, and Sarah Palin and George W. Bush are viewed significantly more negatively than President Obama. But more bad news: The people who dislike Democrats are more likely to actually vote. More»

Pelosi will try to ram health care through before Blue Dogs bolt

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration is running out of time in its race to enact its liberal agenda before Democratic candidates start caring more about their own re-election than the party line, writes Kim Strassel . Tuesday's results show that Obama's power is weakening, and will be the tipping point for many "Blue Dogs and freshmen and swing-state senators," Strassel writes in the Wall Street Journal. More»

Election should be a wake-up call for out-of-touch White House

(NEWSER) - The Democratic Party should view its walloping in Tuesday's election as an opportunity to start listening before it's too late, writes Peggy Noonan . The Democrats have been focusing on the wrong issues since they gained power last year and that explains the huge swing to the Republicans in Virginia and New Jersey, Noonan writes in the Wall Street Journal, dismissing the New York special election as "too messy." More»

Polling guru gives a post-mortem on last night's elections

(NEWSER) - The numbers are in, now it's time to make sense of them. Nate Silver breaks down last night's election results:

• Don’t blame Obama; Creigh Deeds and Jon Corzine were probably just weak candidates. In New Jersey, 57% of voters approved of Obama, but 27% of those supporters voted Republican anyway. In Virginia 20% of those who approved of Obama voted GOP.
• Democrats had turnout problems in Virginia; the voters who came out last night supported McCain 51-43 in 2008, a mirror image of that year's margin.

Majorities say president has no influence on vote

(NEWSER) - President Obama seems to have been a minimal factor in gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia, at least according to early exit polls. In Virginia, where Republican Bob McDonnell won, 55% said Obama wasn’t behind their vote; that figure was 60% in New Jersey, where the race was too close to call an hour after polls closed, CBS News reports. More»